Life in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from the eyes of a Sydney-born feline. She dreams of a world ruled by CATS!!!!!

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

When in Kota Bharu....

We were in Kota Bharu to attend a wedding last weekend (see previous posting). We were short on time but still wanted to fit in a retail therapy session. The locals told us the best place to go is what they call Pasar (market) Siti Khadijah. It was about 20-minute drive from the airport, no traffic jam but the streets around the market were mostly one-way, while finding parking was quite a challenge. We found the entire experience therapeutic. We're girls, my Mama and I, what do you expect? Enjoy the pictorial ride.

Ground floor: Wet Market (aka kitty haven)

This is the ubiquitous scene of the market. I've seen this on postcards and calendars. One of its kind.

Most of the traders are ladies. The buyers too. Men are usually in the background.

Yummm....fresh chicken...it's cheaper by 50sen per kilo than KL.

This lady sells keropok lekor, a sort of wet fish crackers made from fish and sago flour.

This lady has more veges at her stall....

....and also these offensive items - turtle eggs!!!

We caught another pawpawrazzi in action!

First floor: Dry Goods

Aaarrgh....my favourite....beef, chicken and fish floss. The Malay name is serunding. The meat is boiled, shredded, mixed with chili and spices, cooked until dry. Heavenly with rice or bread.

What have we here? Apparently, sweet banana chips!

Another local delicacy - sema - made of spun sugar and flour. Don't talk while you're eating it, lest you shower someone else with white bits of fluff.

More goodies for kids. Must say I like the packaging ideas. So creative.

Aha! Been looking for them for ages. These very colourful stuff is what we call Beleda - a sort of agar, coloured and dried in the sun. Very sweet yet comforting snack.

Second floor: Non-food Items

The roof of the atrium as can be seen from the top floor.

Any girls' heart will go pitter patter here....

There are colourful batik shirts for men too. Formal wear.

Oooh...so much bling bling....at the bottom row are scarves while at the top row are hand painted batik materials with intricate stones and bead work. Stunning.

Angelina's note:We couldn't show you everything because we didn't have enough time to visit every corner of the market. Pray for another visit. Kota Bharu is about nine hours away by car, an hour by aeroplane, a day by train from Kuala Lumpur. It's a loooooong way for a cat to travel. purrr....meow!

Sema and agar-agar jemur! My favourites! But going to the wet markets in the East Coast has become a depressing affair of late. The traders are still openly selling turtle eggs. This is because they claim that these are the eggs of green turtles/Olive Ridleys from Sabah, which are not protected. There is no way of proving or refuting their claim, so the turtle egg laundering continues unabated. The only way we can manage and mitigate this problem is by enforcing a nationwide outright ban on the sale and consumption of turtle eggs.

CO78,My Aunty Ayu who works in turtle conservation is doing a good job in Trengganu but we're not sure if Kelantan is under her jurisdiction. Do you know that it's actually haram to eat them? But many people still do. It's yukky enough to put us off. purr...meow!

Yummy !The foods & spices look and sound delicious. Do you like hot spices ? I love them, even etra hot.The clothing and scarves are magnificent, all that by hand !I enjoyed this great post and would love looking and smelling everything.Did that sound vulgar? Hope not, but I can smell food a mile away.Brad

Beautiful market filled with so much eye and nose candy!!The hanging cloth is lovely to look at as are all the colourful packaged sweets. It must have been enjoyable to speak to all the merchants about their goods, too! :)

Knowing Me Knowing You....

I'm a cat! A very sober puttytat...meow meow meow...who's suffering coz she has to live with five spoilt brats! I used to live in Sydney, Australia but has since migrated lock stock and barrel to Malaysia.